Sanctuary
by mcdinh
Summary: (TRR, ILITW, ES) Everyone has their own sanctuary. Whether it's at a certain place, or through the people they care about. In the end, we sought our own sanctuary in times of trouble…


**Author's note: This is the idea I have for a while, and it involves three drabbles from three different books, but the theme is the same. Consider this as an early Valentine gift for you guys.**

 **And by the way, in the _It Lives in the Woods_ drabble, MC allow Noah to sacrifice himself to Mr. Red, which is a contrast to the other fanfic I've recently written.**

 **Also note that this fanfic also appeared on** **my _tumblr_** **account, where I go by mechaspirt. Link is in my profile.** **Feel free to check it out. Hope you enjoy.**

 **Disclaimer: Definitely do not own any of the Choices books down below. Those are rightfully owned by Pixelberry.**

 **List of Choices books appeared in this order: _The Royal Romance, It Lives in the Woods,_ and _Endless Summer._**

 **Pairings: MCxLiam, MCxAndy, MCxJake**

 _"Finding a sanctuary, a place apart from time, is not so different from finding a faith."_

― Pico Iyer

 ** _In the World of Modern Royalty_**

Night has fallen at the garden of Cordonia, and many people who had come for drinks, singing, and/or dancing had. But few others had chosen to stay behind, wanting to enjoy this wonderful even a bit longer before the next, important event comes up for the kingdom.

Liam never thought he would feel this happy again. After the scandal that force to tear him and Riley apart and making him choose Madeleine as a future queen and wife, the king intolerably had to go through with balancing his duties and wedding plans (that actually sounds worse than execution) while trying to find evidence to clear Riley's name. Lucky for her, Liam sent their friends out to help her out, and they accepted the tasks without any hesitation.

It was painful to deal with because they have to be separated from each other at arm's length as much as possible. Riley was pretty much one of the few people who made Liam really happy, and he couldn't stand the thought of not being able to be near her. Or worse, not being able to see her again…ever. Regard it was a necessary move since their affairs could cause even more agitation in public for both of them. Plus, Riley never wanted to put herself between anyone's relationship, even if that kind of relationship was meant to be a political rather than a romantic one. One of the reasons why Liam loves her so much since the former waitress has a strong sense of morality and determination.

But that was over now. Liam broke off the engagement to Madeleine. Riley's name was cleared and happily accepted the proposal from the king at the Statue of Liberty, making them officially engaged. This was one of the best moments in Liam's life. Sometimes, he thought to himself that it was too good to be true and the whole thing was a dream, but it wasn't. He'd finally get to be with someone he knows who is the one for him and they will forever cherish that moment, no matter what.

Soon, the party winded down and while every else took the exit out of the garden, the newly engaged couple stay behind for a tender moment. They held on to each other in an embrace, foreheads touching each other, leaning for a kiss goodnight before parting ways again. Liam knew that Riley had always been his light. He didn't think he told her yet, but she's was his sanctuary.

 ** _In the World of the Cursed Woods_**

Andy knew without the doubt the Vivian is the strongest and the bravest person in the group, even more so than him and Ava combined. However, he also knew that even the strongest person has a breaking point.

They leaned on to her whenever things get rough at school and surviving the hell load of chaos Mr. Red created for them. Yet, Vivian rarely relies on them and can be reckless sometimes, such as the time when she went to the woods to _confront_ Mr. Red alone and made everything worse. This proved that pulling a dangerous stunt like that can be too much for one person.

Maybe that was one of the reasons why she became cold and distant after another tragic incident with the shadow demon…

The gang found out from Vivian what happened to Noah that day, and they could see her dark eyes full of regret. Despite their reassurance, she blamed herself for letting Noah sacrificing himself to set his sister free and wished it could've been her. Maybe what he did to them was unforgivable, but at least he was willing to do something right at the end for everyone.

PTSD had already hit Vivian, just like how it hit Dan. Perhaps it was the dying part that caused the heroine to crack. She couldn't handle the fact that she lost someone else after Jane died. There were too many "what if's" and "it could've been me" during the time she pushed her friends away once again.

Andy couldn't stand the fact that his girlfriend would reconsider dying and taking the traitor's place just to save all of them. The argument was set between them, with Andy pointing out that the latter would be breaking his heart and everyone else's by leaving them behind while Vivian retorted that none of them understood what's it like to see someone choosing to die right in front of them. It was until then that Andy had to remind himself that Vivian is still suffering from the trauma. They all are. And what she really needed was a shoulder to lean on, not any more fighting. They dealt with too much of that already in the past.

They both managed to talk things out again before sitting down on the floor against the side of Andy's bed from exhaustion. Vivian gently rested her head against his shoulder before finally speaking out again.

"I'm sorry."

"Me too, Vi," Andy replied softly before giving her a gentle kiss on her forehead, "Don't worry. We'll get through this. I'm not going to give up on you, no matter what."

Because he'll be damned if he did, especially on the person who is actually his sanctuary.

 ** _In the World of a Distorted Island_**

The full moon had shown brightly at the bay area of the Colonnade Cove, and despite being in the island of hell, everything seems to be peaceful. But everyone knew that this peace won't last forever. Jake learned that the hard way. Losing a best friend (who turned out to be alive and in a robotic state) and being on the run had taught him that it wasn't easy to trust anyone anymore, and he wouldn't let anyone else in just to avoid getting hurt again.

That all changed when he first met _her_ back at the cockpit. Despite being attracted to her appearance, the pilot considered Yurika as one of those annoying college kids who only came to enjoy the trip. But deep down, she has the intelligence, determination, and compassion to those around her like any true leader would have. And it was thanks to her that everyone is still alive, fighting their way out on this cursed island.

But there's something off about Yurika, lately. It was as if she's becoming more secretive during their times on the island and is close to breaking. Jake even notice the way she was shivering and murmuring a lot in her sleep, indicating that she's been having a lot of nightmares lately. What it was all about was still a mystery to him. All he knows was that they were still bothering her. Noticing the way her face started twitching in her sleep, he gently shook her awake, causing her to open her dark green eyes.

"You okay, Princess?" Jake asked her.

"I am now," Yurika replied. The pilot could've sworn he saw relief in her eyes before giving him an apologetic look on her face, "Sorry. Did I wake you?"

"Naw. Stilling tryin' to get some sleep myself," Jake then looked at her in concern, "You wanna talk about what's bothering you?"

Yurika opened her mouth to respond, but couldn't. Seeing some kind of fear in her eyes, Jake didn't push it. Instead, he held her close to his chest and gently ran his fingers through her long hair. "Hey, it's okay if you don't want to tell me now. I'm right here if you still need someone to talk to. Just try to get some sleep. We still need to look for the others."

Yurika nodded in agreement and snuggle against the pilot before slowly falling asleep once again. The former couldn't help but smile at the sleeping form of the woman he loved.

It's been a long time since Jake had ever let anyone get close to him, and he was glad it was her. She was the one who convinced him that it's okay to let those walls down once in a while, knowing that she would always be there to comfort him. It was only then until Jake realized how much she really means to him. He nearly lost Yurika once, when she fell out of the helicopter and into the ocean. But then he, along with Estela, found her again during the volcanic eruption nearly losing consciousness due to the atmosphere. By that time, he swore he would never lose her again.

He never wanted to admit this, but in a way, she was his sanctuary.


End file.
